Palestinians check a damaged vehicle after Israeli strikes in central Gaza Strip city of Deir el-Balah, on April 2, 2024. (Yasser Qudih/Xinhua via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — The foreign-aid organization World Central Kitchen called on Thursday for an independent and international investigation into the killing of seven of its workers in an Israel airstrike in Gaza.
“An independent investigation is the only way to determine the truth of what happened, ensure transparency and accountability for those responsible, and prevent future attacks on humanitarian aid workers,” the organization said in a statement.
The seven aid workers were killed Monday night when their three-vehicle convoy, including two armored cars, was struck after leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse in central Gaza, where the aid workers had helped unload more than 100 tons of humanitarian aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route, according to the statement from WCK, a humanitarian organization dedicated to delivering food aid.
The organization, which was founded by chef Jose Andres, described the airstrike that killed the workers as a “military attack that involved multiple strikes and targeted three WCK vehicles.”
“All three vehicles were carrying civilians; they were marked as WCK vehicles; and their movements were in full compliance with Israeli authorities, who were aware of their itinerary, route, and humanitarian mission,” the non-governmental organization said Thursday.
WCK said it had asked the U.S., Australian, Canadian and Polish governments to “join us in demanding an independent, third-party investigation into these attacks, including whether they were carried out intentionally or otherwise violated international law.”
A senior adviser for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said claims that the Israeli strike was intentional were “absurd.”
“The last thing we would want in the world is to endanger civilian lives,” Ophir Falk, the adviser, told ABC News on Wednesday.
WCK said Thursday that it had asked Israel to preserve all material — including documents and communications — that may be relevant to the strike.
Elephants walk through one of the dried channel of the wildlife reach Okavango Delta near the Nxaraga village in the outskirt of Maun, on September 28, 2019. (Monirul Bhuiyan/AFP via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi has offered to export 20,000 elephants to Germany in a conservation spat with Berlin following comments from Germany’s environment ministry calling on tougher rules on the import of hunting trophies.
“20,000 wild elephants for Germany. It’s not a joke,” Masisi said speaking to German newspaper Bild. “It is very easy to sit in Berlin and have an opinion about our affairs in Botswana. We are paying the price for preserving these animals for the world.”
Maisisi was responding to comments from German Environment Minister and Green Party politician, Steffi Lemke, calling on the southern African nation to restrict the movement of hunting trophies due to poaching concerns.
Germany — one of the European Union’s largest importers of hunting trophies — proposed introducing stricter limits on the imports of hunting trophies, citing concerns over poaching.
The move was met with scorn from Botswana, with Maisisi saying Germans should try living “together with the animals, in the way you are trying to tell us to.” The president said Botswana does more “than any country in the world” in wildlife protection.
Botswana is home “one of the last strongholds for African elephants,” with over 130,000 elephants living within the borders of the southern African nation, according to the African Wildlife Foundation.
Botswana is home to the largest elephant population in the African continent, and the world.
However, Botswana has said it is tackling an “overpopulation” of elephants — particularly in the north of the nation — with high population of the giants causing an increase in human-wildlife conflict, inflicting damage on vegetation and in some cases trampling residents.
Trophy hunting — which refers to the hunting of animals for sport for “trophies” such as horns, tusks, heads and antlers — has been a divisive topic in Africa, with conservationists arguing that the activity is exacerbating the decline of wildlife populations that are already facing the threat of decline due to poaching. However Botswana, and other conservationists, argue the activity can help revive animal populations, helping to fund communities, deter poachers and protect biodiversity.
In 2014, Botswana instituted a ban on trophy hunting following a decline in local elephant populations. However, the ban was reinstated in 2019 following pressure from local communities, with the southern African nation now issuing hunting quotas for elephants and other species.
Maisisi said restricting the import of trophies will harm conservation efforts by causing a spike in poaching, leading to loss of wildlife habitats and decrease income for Botswana, leading to poverty.
Last month, Botswana’s Environment and Tourism minister, Dumezweni Mthimkhulu, said trophy hunting was a mechanism of “controlling elephants” as opposed to culling them, providing a source of income for Botswana.
In an interview with Sky News, Mthimkhulu suggested sending 10,000 elephants to London’s Hyde Park, so the British could have a “taste of living alongside them,” following the introduction of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill.
Following the conservation spat, Botswana’s Ministry of Environment announced Mthimkhulu has urged his German counterpart to consider an “in-depth consultation and assessment” on the impact of the proposed ban on importation of Hunting trophies with European Union Members, urging them to visit Botswana to “appreciate the country’s conservation strides.”
“Minister Mthimkhulu reiterated that hunting is a significant wildlife conservation measure widely used in Southern Africa and other parts of East Africa, that generates income and used to combat poaching, support community development, habitat Protection and adapting to the effects of climate change,” the ministry said.
ABC News has reached out to Botswana’s Ministry of Environment and Tourism for comment.
(NEW YORK) — The bodies of six of the seven World Central Kitchen aid workers killed in an Israeli military missile strike this week left Gaza on Wednesday, hospital officials said, as the fallout from the deadly incident continues to grow.
The bodies were taken by ambulance from the Abu Youssef Al-Najjar Hospital morgue in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, hospital officials said, beginning the long journeys home to their respective countries around the globe.
“On this day, as we bid farewell to martyrs of foreign nationalities — three martyrs of the humanitarian duty of British nationality, one American, one Australian, and one Polish — this is a sign that the weapons provided by the British and American governments in support of the Israeli occupation army in weapons, money and equipment, do not differentiate between Palestinians and other nationalities,” said Marwan Al-Hams, director of the Abu Youssef Al-Najjar Hospital.
Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25, the seventh aid worker killed in the strike, was laid to rest in Gaza on Tuesday, according to reports.
The aid workers, ranging in age from 25 to 57, were killed Monday night when their three-vehicle convoy, including two armored cars, was hit after leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse in central Gaza, where the aid workers had helped unload more than 100 tons of humanitarian aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route, according to the statement from WCK, a humanitarian organization dedicated to delivering food aid.
Herzi Halevi, chief of the Israel Defense Forces, said in a video statement Tuesday that the airstrike that killed the aid workers was a “grave mistake” and was “not carried out with the intention of harming the WCK aid workers.”
“It was a mistake that followed a misidentification at night, during a war, in very complex conditions. It shouldn’t have happened,” Halevi said. “This incident was a grave mistake. Israel is at war with Hamas, not with the people of Gaza. We are sorry for the unintentional harm to the members of WCK.”
Halevi’s statement echoed those of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli military and government officials, who promised that Israel would conduct a thorough and transparent investigation of the missile strike.
In addition to Abutaha, the WCK aid workers killed in the strike were identified as Damian Sobol, 35, of Poland; Jacob Flickinger, 33, a duel U.S.-Canada citizen; and Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom, 43, of Australia. Also killed were three members of the WCK security team, John Chapman, 57, James (Jim) Henderson, 33, and James Kirby, 47, all of Great Britain.
In a statement identifying the seven aid workers, WCK CEO Erin Gore described them as “the heroes of World Central Kitchen.”
“These seven beautiful souls were killed by the IDF in a strike as they were returning from a full day’s mission,” Gore said. “Their smiles, laughter, and voices are forever embedded in our memories. And we have countless memories of them giving their best selves to the world. We are reeling from our loss, the world’s loss.”
President Joe Biden said in a statement Tuesday that he is “outraged” and “heartbroken” by the deaths of the aid workers.
“They were providing food to hungry civilians in the middle of a war,” Biden said. “They were brave and selfless. Their deaths are a tragedy.”
Ophir Falk, a foreign policy advisor to Netanyahu, called allegations that the aid workers were deliberately targeted “absurd.”
“The last thing we would want in the world is to endanger civilian lives. We seek to minimize civilian casualties,” Falk said. “The last thing we would want is for humanitarian aid workers to be, to be harmed. And we go to great lengths to minimize civilian casualties. This war is a complex war. The incident happened in the middle of the night. It should not have happened. And we’ll do everything possible so that it doesn’t happen again.”
(LONDON) — King Charles III is giving the public a never-before-seen glimpse into two of the most iconic royal residences, Buckingham Palace and Balmoral Castle.
Starting this summer, members of the public will be able to tour the East Wing of Buckingham Palace for the first time, according to an announcement Wednesday from the Royal Collection Trust.
The tour will include a stop in the room that members of Britain’s royal family gather in before stepping out on the palace’s famous balcony, where they wave to the public after major events like coronations, jubilees and the annual Trooping the Colour.
The East Wing tour will also include visits to rooms used by the royals for official meetings and events, according to the Royal Collection Trust.
The tour, which will run daily in July and August, comes after five years of renovations to the East Wing to “upgrade the historic building’s infrastructure, improve access and preserve it for future generations,” according to the Royal Collection Trust.
Also opening this summer for the first time is Balmoral Castle, the royal family’s estate in Scotland.
Balmoral Castle was particularly beloved by the late Queen Elizabeth II, who spent the final months of her life there in 2022.
Starting on July 1, guided tours of the interior of the castle will begin for the first time ever, according to the castle’s website.
The tours will run through Aug. 4, and are only open to 10 people at a time. Tickets for the Castle Interior Tour start at just over $120 per person, according to the website. Tickets for the Castle Interior Tour with Afternoon Tea, which is offered to adults only, will cost around $190 per person.
“You will learn about the origins of the Castle and how it has been loved by generations of the Royal family,” the description for the tour reads. “Travel through time from the purchase of the Balmoral by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, through to present day, where you can see how rooms within the Castle are used today by their Majesty’s The King and Queen and other members of the Royal Family.”
Starting in early May, the castle’s gardens, exhibitions and grounds will also be open to the public on a daily basis through mid-August, as they are each summer, according to the castle’s website.
Tickets for tours of the grounds, gardens and exhibitions at Balmoral can be purchased online, with prices ranging depending on group size, age and tour experience.
(NEW YORK) — At least nine people were killed and more than 1,000 others were injured on Wednesday in the most powerful earthquake to strike Taiwan in 25 years, the Taiwanese government said.
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit just before 8 a.m. local time, with an epicenter near Hualien, a city on the eastern coast. More than 100 aftershocks, including one with a preliminary magnitude of 6.5, also near Hualien, have struck the island, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The nine deaths were all in Hualien, according to Taiwan’s National Fire Agency and the EMIC in Taipei. Another 143 people are believed to be trapped either under rumble or in other locations.
Among the trapped are at least 71 miners in two different rock quarries in cement factory areas, according to the Taiwanese Ministry of Health and Welfare. Of the trapped, 64 are in Heping Mine and seven miners are trapped in Zhonghe Mine Heren Mining area.
There are also a number of tourists and employees trapped in Hualian’s Taroko National Park, including 47 employees at Silk Place Taroko Hotel and 24 tourists in the Jiuqu Cave tourist area, officials said.
The number of injured rose throughout the day, as authorities collected information about the destruction.
At noon, emergency personnel said there were 57 injuries reported across the island. By 2 p.m., the number of injuries climbed to 711, emergency officials said. The figure jumped to 821 by the time authorities released their 4:30 p.m. update and climbed again to 934 injured by 6 p.m., officials said.
The total rose to 1,011 injuries in the country’s final update of the night Wednesday.
At least 317 of the injured were in Taipei and New Taipei City, cities about 80 to 100 miles from the epicenter, officials said.
A five-story house and another building in Hualien collapsed. A seven-decade-old low-rise house in Keelung and at least one other building in Taipei were said to have falling debris.
Other reported damage included nine sections of local highways and 11 roads with falling stones or cracked pavements.
The metro system and high-speed rail were suspended. The highways in northern Yiland and eastern Hualien were shut off as a precautionary measure, according to the Taiwanese Highway Bureau.
There have been three small tsunamis reported on islands between Japan’s main island and Taiwan. All Tsunami warnings in Japan, though, have ended.
Six other quakes with a magnitude of 7 or greater have struck the area in the last 50 years, USGS officials said in a summary of the event.
“The largest of these was an M 7.7 earthquake in September 1999 (the Chi-Chi earthquake) that resulted in at least 2,297 fatalities, caused damage estimated at $14 billion, and occurred 59 km east of the April 2, 2024, event,” the USGS said.
(NEW YORK) — At least nine people were killed and more than 900 others were injured on Wednesday in the most powerful earthquake to strike Taiwan in 25 years, the Taiwanese government said.
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit just before 8 a.m. local time, with an epicenter near Hualien, a city on the eastern coast. More than 100 aftershocks, including one with a preliminary magnitude of 6.5, also near Hualien, have struck the island, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The nine deaths were all in Hualien, according to Taiwan’s National Fire Agency and the EMIC in Taipei. Another 56 people were believed to have been trapped under rubble at 6 p.m., down from the 127 authorities had said were missing hours earlier.
The number of injured rose throughout the day, as authorities collected information about the destruction.
At noon, emergency personnel said there were 57 injuries reported across the island. By 2 p.m., the number of injuries climbed to 711, emergency officials said. The figure jumped to 821 by the time authorities released their 4:30 p.m. update and climbed again to 934 injured by 6 p.m., officials said.
At least 317 of the injured were in Taipei and New Taipei City, cities about 80 to 100 miles from the epicenter, officials said.
A five-story house and another building in Hualien collapsed. A seven-decade-old low-rise house in Keelung and at least one other building in Taipei were said to have falling debris.
Other reported damage included nine sections of local highways and 11 roads with falling stones or cracked pavements.
The metro system and high-speed rail were suspended. The highways in northern Yiland and eastern Hualien were shut off as a precautionary measure, according to the Taiwanese Highway Bureau.
There have been three small tsunamis reported on islands between Japan’s main island and Taiwan. All Tsunami warnings in Japan, though, have ended.
Six other quakes with a magnitude of 7 or greater have struck the area in the last 50 years, USGS officials said in a summary of the event.
“The largest of these was an M 7.7 earthquake in September 1999 (the Chi-Chi earthquake) that resulted in at least 2,297 fatalities, caused damage estimated at $14 billion, and occurred 59 km east of the April 2, 2024, event,” the USGS said.
(SYRIA) — The Pentagon said Tuesday that Israel was behind the airstrike in Damascus, Syria, that killed seven people, including a top Iranian commander, even though Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary, told reporters Tuesday that Israel was behind the airstrike in Damascus has led Iran to say it would retaliate.
“The U.S. did not conduct a strike in Damascus,” said Singh. “I would refer you to the Israelis to speak to their strike.”
Singh later said that the U.S. assessed that Israel was behind the airstrike and that several leaders from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had been killed in the airstrike.
“Our initial assessment right now is that it was a few top IRGC leaders, we haven’t been able to independently confirm identities, but that is our initial assessment right now,” she said.
Singh added that “we were not notified by the Israelis about their strike or the intended target of their strike in Damascus.”
The building that was struck in Damascus has been described as Iran’s consulate in Syria and was located near the diplomatic facilities of other countries in Syria.
“I don’t have a lot of details on what type of building that was, but no, we don’t support attacks on diplomatic facilities,” she added.
Israel has not confirmed that it was behind the attack nor has it denied that it was responsible for the strike that Iran said killed Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi, his deputy Gen. Mohammad Hadi Hajriahimi, and five other IRGC officers.
That is typical for Israel which is believed to have launched dozens if not hundreds of airstrikes inside Syria in recent years.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed revenge on Israel on Tuesday for the airstrike.
“The evil regime (will be punished by the hands of our brave men,” said Khameini in a statement posted on his official website. “We will make them regret this crime and similar ones, God willing.”
Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, has also said that “the United States should be answerable” for the attack.
“Let me make it clear, we had nothing to do with the strike in Damascus,” John Kirby, the White House National Security Communications Advisor told reporters at the White House. “So, the comments by the Iranian foreign minister that somehow we’re to blame is just nonsense. We had nothing to do with it.”
Singh noted that the United States had contacted Iran to tell them “We were not responsible for this airstrike.”
She explained the United States had reached out to Iran to prevent a miscalculation given the tensions in the region.
Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria have targeted U.S. facilities in both of those countries after Israel invaded Gaza following Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 attack in Israel.
The last of those attacks occurred on Feb. 4, although a drone was shot down near the U.S. base at At Tanf Garrison on Monday. The base does not appear to have been targeted.
“I think that tensions being high in the region, we wanted to make it very clear in in private channels that the US had no involvement in the strike in Damascus,” she said. “And we did that.”
(GAZA) — Seven aid workers with World Central Kitchen were killed during an Israel Defense Forces attack in Gaza, the food-relief organization said, adding that it plans to pause its operations in the region.
“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war,” CEO Erin Gore said in a statement. “This is unforgivable.”
WCK identified all seven victims on Tuesday. The youngest was Palestinian Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25.
There were three victims from the U.K.: John Chapman, 57; James “Jim” Henderson, 33; and James Kirby, 47.
The victims also included Damian Sobol, 35, of Poland; Jacob Flickinger, 33, of the U.S. and Canada; and Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom, 43, of Australia.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Joe Biden spoke with WCK founder Jose Andres and “conveyed he is grieving with the entire World Central Kitchen family.”
“The president felt it was important to recognize the tremendous contribution World Central Kitchen has made to the people of Gaza and people around the world,” Jean-Pierre said. “The president conveyed he will make clear to Israel humanitarian aid workers must be protected.”
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby offered the administration’s strongest reaction to the deadly strike.
“We were outraged to learn of an IDF strike that killed a number of civilian humanitarian workers yesterday from the World Central Kitchen, which has been relentless and working to get food to those who are hungry in Gaza, and quite frankly, around the world,” Kirby said. “We send our deepest condolences to their families and loved ones.”
Kirby added, “This incident is emblematic of a larger problem and evidence of why distribution of aid in Gaza has been so challenging. But what — beyond the strike — what is clear is that the IDF must do much more, much more to improve deconfliction processes so that civilians and humanitarian aid workers are protected.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made his first comments about the deadly incident as he was leaving a hospital after undergoing successful hernia surgery.
“Unfortunately, in the last day, there was a tragic case of our forces unintentionally hitting innocent people in the Gaza Strip,” Netanyahu said. “It happens in war, we check it to the end. We are in contact with the governments, and we will do everything so that this thing does not happen again.”
Netanyahu later released a second statement, saying, “Israel deeply regrets the tragic incident which claimed the lives of seven humanitarian aid workers.”
“Our hearts go out to their families and to their home countries,” Netanyahu said. “The IDF is conducting a swift and transparent investigation and we will make our findings public. Israel is fully committed to enabling humanitarian aid to reach the civilian population in Gaza and we will do everything in our power to ensure that such tragedies do not occur in the future.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog also called Andres on Tuesday to express his condolences. In a statement, Herzog said he conveyed to Andres “Israel’s commitment to ensuring a through investigation of the tragedy.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese demanded accountability for Frankcom’s death while describing her as having “the sort of values that are shown by someone going into a very dangerous place in order to assist mankind, your fellow humans, people who she didn’t know.”
“She just wanted to help out through this charity,” Albanese said. “It says everything about the character of this young woman, and so this tragedy and my sincere condolences and that of the Australian government go to Zomi’s family, to her friends and all who knew her.”
WCK, a non-governmental organization, has been operating in Gaza for months and has said it’s served more than 33 million meals since the start of the conflict. It operates over 60 community kitchens in Gaza with the help of about 400 Palestinians on the ground.
U.S. officials are “heartbroken and deeply troubled” by the strike, Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said in a statement on social media.
“Humanitarian aid workers must be protected as they deliver aid that is desperately needed, and we urge Israel to swiftly investigate what happened,” Watson said.
A representative from the organization said WCK was still gathering details about the incident that took place early Tuesday morning.
According to the WCK statement, the aid workers were traveling in a three-vehicle caravan, including two armored cars, all branded with the WCK logo. Despite coordinating its movements with the IDF, the team was hit as it was leaving Deir al-Balah warehouse in central Gaza, where it had helped unload more than 100 tons of humanitarian aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route, according to the WCK statement.
“This is a tragedy. Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should NEVER be a target. EVER,” the representative said in a statement.
The IDF said in a statement that it was conducting a “thorough review at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”
“The IDF makes extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid, and has been working closely with WCK in their vital efforts to provide food and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” the statement said.
Also on Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant referred to the tragic nature of the incident and emphasized the importance of conducting a thorough, professional investigation, which will be followed by the implementation of lessons learned. Gallant highlighted the important work undertaken by international aid organizations, as well as Israel’s commitment to working closely with partner countries and organizations and facilitating the distribution of humanitarian aid.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday in Paris that the U.S. has spoken to the Israeli government about the missile strike on the WCK team.
“We’ve spoken directly to the Israeli government about this particular incident we’ve urged the swift, thorough and impartial investigation to understand exactly what happened,” Blinken said.
Blinken said the seven victims “join a record number of humanitarian workers who have been killed in this particular conflict.” At least 196 aid workers, including 175 members of the U.N. staff, have now been killed in the Hamas-Israel conflict, according to U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
“I can only say that for so many of us, we extend our condolences to the loved ones, to the families, friends, colleagues of those who lost their lives, or who were injured,” Blinken said. “They have been doing extraordinary, brave work day-in and day-out, and critical work … starting with the most basic thing of all: food. These people are heroes. They run into the fire. They show the best of what humanity has to offer. They have to be protected.”
Officials in the United Kingdom were “urgently working” to verify whether British citizens had been killed, David Cameron, the U.K.’s foreign secretary, said in a statement.
“We have called on Israel to immediately investigate and provide a full, transparent explanation of what happened,” he said.
Andres, the founder of WCK, said he was “heartbroken” and “grieving” for the families and friends of the workers who were killed.
“Today @WCKitchen lost several of our sisters and brothers in an IDF air strike in Gaza,” he wrote on X.
He added, “I am heartbroken and grieving for their families and friends and our whole WCK family. These are people … angels … I served alongside in Ukraine, Gaza, Turkey, Morocco, Bahamas, Indonesia. They are not faceless … they are not nameless. The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace starts with our shared humanity. It needs to start now.”
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a taped message that he had spoken with Andres and “expressed the deepest condolences.”
“We will be opening a probe to examine this serious incident further. This will help us reduce the risk of such an event from occurring again,” he said, adding, “We will get to the bottom of this and we will share our findings transparently.”
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Bill Hutchinson contributed to this story.
(NEW YORK) — Seven aid workers with World Central Kitchen were killed during an Israel Defense Forces attack in Gaza, the food-relief organization said, adding that it plans to pause its operations in the region.
“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war,” CEO Erin Gore said in a statement. “This is unforgivable.”
The dead included Australian, Polish, British and Palestinian aid workers, WCK said. One worker was a dual American-Canadian citizen, the organization said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made his first comments about the deadly incident as he was leaving a hospital after undergoing successful hernia surgery.
“Unfortunately, in the last day, there was a tragic case of our forces unintentionally hitting innocent people in the Gaza Strip,” Netanyahu said. “It happens in war, we check it to the end. We are in contact with the governments, and we will do everything so that this thing does not happen again.”
WCK, a non-governmental organization, has been operating in Gaza for months and has said it’s served more than 33 million meals since the start of the conflict. It operates over 60 community kitchens in Gaza with the help of about 400 Palestinians on the ground.
U.S. officials are “heartbroken and deeply troubled” by the strike, Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said in a statement on social media.
“Humanitarian aid workers must be protected as they deliver aid that is desperately needed, and we urge Israel to swiftly investigate what happened,” Watson said.
A representative from the organization said WCK was still gathering details about the incident that took place early Tuesday morning.
“This is a tragedy. Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should NEVER be a target. EVER,” the representative said in a statement.
The IDF said in a statement that it was conducting a “thorough review at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”
“The IDF makes extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid, and has been working closely with WCK in their vital efforts to provide food and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” the statement said.
Officials in the United Kingdom were “urgently working” to verify whether British citizens had been killed, David Cameron, the U.K.’s foreign secretary, said in a statement.
“We have called on Israel to immediately investigate and provide a full, transparent explanation of what happened,” he said.
Jose Andres, the chef and founder of WCK, said he was “heartbroken” and “grieving” for the families and friends of the WCK workers who were killed.
“Today @WCKitchen lost several of our sisters and brothers in an IDF air strike in Gaza,” he wrote on X.
He added, “I am heartbroken and grieving for their families and friends and our whole WCK family. These are people…angels…I served alongside in Ukraine, Gaza, Turkey, Morocco, Bahamas, Indonesia. They are not faceless…they are not nameless. The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace starts with our shared humanity. It needs to start now.”
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a taped message that he had spoken with Andres and “expressed the deepest condolences.”
“We will be opening a probe to examine this serious incident further. This will help us reduce the risk of such an event from occurring again,” he said, adding, “We will get to the bottom of this and we will share our findings transparently.”
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti contributed to this story.
